WEBVTT CAROSA SHOWS US HOW THATSTRATEGY IS PROVING TO BESUCCESSFUL.REPORTER: JANICE LAMATTINA SAYSSHE HAS STRUGGLED WITH MENTALHEALTH ISSUES SINCE SHE WAS AYOUNG CHILD.>> I REMEMBER BEING IN SCHOOLAND HAVING A LOT OF ANXIETY ANDA LOT OF ISSUES.IT WAS RECOMMENDED I WAS PUT ONMEDICATION FOR HYPERACTIVITY.REPORTER: SHE SAYS SHE'S ALSODEALT WITH DEPRESSION AND ADMITSTO SUBSTANCE ABUSE THROUGHOUTHER YOUTH TO COPE.>> I HAD NO REAL WAY TO COPEWITH THE THINGS THAT HAD BEENLEFT UNTREATED.REPORTER: JANICE ABUSED ALCOHOLAND PAIN MEDICATION, AND AFTERGOING THROUGH SEVERAL RECOVERYPROGRAMS AND RELAPSING, SHEENDED UP HOMELESS, AND THEN INJAIL, WHICH SHE SAYS WAS ABLESSING BECAUSE SHE ENDED UP ATHARBOR HOMES IN NASHUA.>> WHEN I CAME OUT OF PRISON, ITHINK 2010, I WENT TO THEIRHOMELESS SHELTER.REPORTER: THAT'S WHEN SHE METCLINICAL SOCIAL WORKER ELISABETHMCGUIRE.>> FREQUENTLY I SEE PEOPLE WHOHAVE HAD A LOT OF TRAUMA INTHEIR LIVES, DEPRESSION,ANXIETY.THEY TRY TO NUMB OUT THE PAINTHROUGH A SUBSTANCE.REPORTER: THE GOVERNMENT AGENCYTHAT DEALS WITH SUBSTANCE MISUSEAND MENTAL ILLNESS SAYS NEARLYADULTS HAVE BOTH A MENTAL HEALTH8 MILLION DISORDER AND SUBSTANCEABUSE ISSUE, ACCORDING TO A 2014SURVEY.ELISABETH SAYS WHEN WORKING WITHTHESE PATIENTS, COUNSELORS NEEDTO TREAT BOTH AT THE SAME TIME.>> USING MENTAL HEALTH SERVICESHELPS PEOPLE GET THROUGHWHATEVER REASON THEY ARE USING.REPORTER: WITH THE HELP OFELISABETH, JANICE ADRESSED THOSEISSUES AND IS NOW LIVING A MOREFULLFILLING LIFE WORKING FOR ARECOVERY CENTER IN NASHUA CALLEDDESTINATIONS WELLNESS HELPING, OTHERS GET CLEAN.>> I GET TO RELATE A LOT OFPEOPLE ON A LOT OF DIFFERENTLEVELS, AND HOPEFULLY HELP THEM.

Millions of Americans who are fighting addiction are also battling mental illness, and some programs in New Hampshire are focused on helping people overcome both.

Janice Lamattina, of Nashua, said she has struggled with mental health issues since she was a young child.

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"I remember being in school and having a lot of anxiety and a lot of issues," she said. "It was recommended that I be put on medication for hyperactivity."

She said she has also dealt with depression, and she admitted that she coped with her issues by turning to substance abuse throughout her youth.

"I had no real way to deal with the things that had gone untreated," she said.

Lamattina said she abused alcohol and pain medication, and after going through several recovery programs and relapsing, she ended up homeless and eventually in jail. She said that was a blessing, because she ended up at Harbor Homes in Nashua.

"When I came out of prison, which I think was 2010, I went to their homeless shelter," she said.

That's where she met clinical social worker Elisabeth Maguire.

"Frequently, I have seen a lot of people who have had a lot of trauma in their life, depression and anxiety, and they are numbing out the pain through the use of a substance," Maguire said.

The government agency that deals with substance misuse and mental illness said that a 2014 survey showed that nearly eight million adults have both a mental health disorder and substance abuse issue.

Maguire said that when working with such patients, counselors need to treat both issues at the same time.

"Using mental health services helps people get through whatever reason they are using," she said.

Lamattina said she addressed those issues with Maguire's help and is now living a more fulfilling life working for a recovery center in Nashua called Destinations Wellness, where she helps others get clean.

"I get to relate to people on a lot of different levels, and I'm hopefully a help to them," she said.